Catholic schools to eliminate bottled water

Bottled water is vanishing from Saskatoon-area Catholic schools. The Greater Saskatoon Catholic school board approved a new policy Monday evening to eliminate commercially bottled water from school cafeterias and vending machines, the division office and school events. "It's providing a good model for our community," director of education Greg Chatlain told the board. "It isn't about forcing it on students."

Bottled water is vanishing from Saskatoon-area Catholic schools. The Greater Saskatoon Catholic school board approved a new policy Monday evening to eliminate commercially bottled water from school cafeterias and vending machines, the division office and school events. “It’s providing a good model for our community,” director of education Greg Chatlain told the board. “It isn’t about forcing it on students.”

Access to potable water across the world is under threat, partly because of the increasing commercialization and privatization of water, the board’s new policy says.

The policy is a show of solidarity with countries that don’t have access to clean water.

In a fact sheet for schools, the division says bottled water costs as much as 10,000 times more than tap water, and is tested for safety far less frequently.

Not always recycled as they could be, the bottles are an environmental blight, contributing to a massive swath of plastic afloat in the Pacific Ocean and consuming millions of litres of oil in their production and transport, the document notes. “That little bottle touches a lot within our world. So, yeah, we’re proud of (the policy), and believe in our small way we can make a difference in the world,” superintendent of education Darryl Bazylak said.

The board isn’t the first to shun the bottle. The City of San Francisco banned bottled water sales on city property last year. Ontario’s

Algonquin Lakeshore Catholic District school board, the Waterloo regional school board and the Toronto Catholic school board have all gone bottle-free.

A group of University of Saskatchewan students is also campaigning to ban the sale of bottled water on campus.

However, the Toronto District School Board opted against such a policy in 2009 when a review found installing water fountains to keep students hydrated would cost $2 million. The money lost from water sales would have led to the elimination of five cafeteria jobs, the review said.

GSCS may be the first division in Saskatchewan to make the move. None of Saskatoon public, Regina public, Regina Catholic, Prairie Spirit or Horizon school divisions have a similar policy. Horizon school division is watching the Saskatoon Catholic division’s move, director of education Kevin Garinger said. It would be harder to do in a rural school division when periodic water quality problems prompt Horizon to bring in bottled water for students, he noted.

“I applaud their desire to want to go in that direction,” Garinger said.

Although the new GSCS rules take effect immediately, administrators have some work to do. Bazylak said the division plans to install tap water refill stations for reusable bottles in any schools that lack them. Some schools have them already.

The division must also stick to the terms of any existing bottled beverage contracts they have – although Bazylak said he doesn’t think the contracts specify what types of drinks schools must sell.

The plastic used in bottled water is completely recyclable, and is one of the most recycled forms of consumer packaging in Canada, said Carolyn Fell, a spokeswoman for the Canadian Beverage Association, in an email.

The bottled water industry’s draw on the public water supply in Canada is negligible – about the equivalent of a three-minute shower per person each year, Fell wrote.

Joanne Fedyk, executive director of the Saskatchewan Waste Reduction Council, said she supports the board’s move.

“Why do we have bottled water in buildings with municipal water that’s treated to drinking water standards? Do we need it? It seems like not,” she said.

At least two Greater Saskatoon Catholic board members said they were proud to approve the policy.

“We know that water and the commodification of water, and access to clean, fresh water, is one of the most significant issues economically, and in our environment, that we do face,” trustee Lisa Lambert said.

This Week's Flyers

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.